Fingerpiece controlled gas lighters



Nov. 29, 1966 c, ZELLWEGER ET AL 3,287,939

FINGERPIECE CONTROLLED GAS LIGHTERS Original Filed July 23, 1963 UnitedStates Patent() 3 claims. (cl. 1 -7.1)

Tln's application is a division of pending application, Serial No.297,128 tiled July 23, 1963, now patent No. 3,208,243 granted Sept. 28,1965 and assigned to the same assignee as the present application.

This invention relates to gas fueled cigar lighters and moreparticularly it concerns a tingerpiece operated gas lighter wherein theflow of fuel through a burner nozzle on the lighter is regulated bymeans of, a movable ngerpiece.

In gas type lighters aV highly volatile fuel is maintained within areservoir in its liquid form under pressures substantially in excess ofatmospheric pressure. During operation of the lighter, this fuel, inpassing from the reservoir through a gas passage, is throttled down toatmospheric pressure thus converting it to gaseous form; and it is thenexpelled out through a lburner nozzle and ignited. The size of theorifice through which the throttling process takes place determines therate of fuel ow and consequently the height of ame maintained above thelighter.

Fine r gradual flow adjustment means are often provided to vary the sizeof the throttling orifice within given limits so as to obtain closecontrol of the height of the ame above the lighter. Because of thenature of the fuels involved and because of the influence of these fuelsupon ame height, the region over which the orilic is adjusted is smallrelative to its overall size.

For completely shutting oif fuel ow so as to extinguish the llame andprevent fuel loss when the lighter is not in use, there are alsoprovided positive ilow control means which act to check and uncheck fuelflow either to or from the variable orifice.

The presence of gradual adjustment means and positive flow control meanshas accounted for a consi-derable portion of the complexity and cost ofgas lighters. Very often the controls for these means are such as torequire two handed operation of the lighter thus rendering the lightergenerally inconvenient to handle and operate.

According to the present invention there is provided a lighter in whichboth positive flow control and gradual flow adjustment are eflectuatedby means of a single depressible tingerpiece element. The control systemof the present invention provides simplification of both theconstruction and the operation of a gas lighter while maintainingcomplete and full control of fuel flow therein.

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the twofunctions of positive liow control and gradual flow adjustment areobtained at a single point within a gas passage leading from the lighterfuel reservoir to its burner nozzle. This is achieved by providing atsuch point a variable constriction which is adjustable from a completeclosure to a gas passage opening commensurate with maximum flow. Adepressible fingerpiece is provided and is connected to vary thisorifice opening over this complete range. Complete and rapid depressionof the iingerpiece upon ignition of the lighter ensures immediate andfull opening of the fuel passageway; and subsequent partial release ofthe ngerpiece effects gradual ow adjustment for the control of flameheight.

There has thus been outlined rather broadly the more ICC importantfeatures of the invention in order that the detailed description thereofthat follows may be better understood, and in order that the presentcontribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course,additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafterand which will form the subject of the claims appended hereto. Thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which thisydisclosure is based may readily Vbe utilized as a -basis for thedesigning of other structures for carrying out the several purposes ofthe invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regardedas including such equivalent constructions as do not depart from thespirit and scope of the invention.

A specic embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes ofillustration and description, and is shown in the accompanying drawings,forming a part of the specification, wherein:

FIG. l is a section view of an upper portion of the lighter embodyingthe present invention;

PIG. 2 is a section view of the lighter of FIG. l taken along line 2 2;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the lighter of FIG. 1 with its cover attached;and

FIG. 4 is a top view of the lighter of FIG. 1 with its cover removed.

The lighter of the present invention generally designated in thedrawings includes a body member 120 formed with a fuel containing recess122 in its lower portion. A lower cover 124 sealably attached to thebottom of the lighter closes the fuel containing recess. The upperportion of the body is recessed in a manner providingvarious grooves andcavities for the operative elements of the lighter, including a sparkingwheel 126, flint element 128, biasing spring and depressible iingerpiece132. An upper cover piece 134 is attached to the top of the lighter andextends over these operative elements to hold them in place. A leaf typeresilient arm 136 extends upwardly from the fingerpiece 132 and abutsthe upper cover piece to bias the fingerpiece in a counter clockwise orundepressed position.

A burner tube 137 has a first portion 138 which extends from within thefuel containing recess 122 and up through an opening 140 in its topwall, a second portion 139 terminating in a burner opening 142 in theVicinity of the sparking wheel 126 and flint element 128, and a thirdportion 141 connecting the portions 138 and 139 and extending laterallybetween these portions at an angle to the portion 138. The burner tubealso has a bent, partially attened portion 144 just above the top wallopening 140 at the juncture of the portions 138 and 141. This flattenedportion is resiliently constrictable so that the fuel passage therein atthat point may be varied in cross sectional area simply by moving thetube up and down at a point beyond the flattened portion. As shown inthe drawings this is accomplished by means of a claw shaped arrangement146 on one end of the depressible ingerpiece, which arrangement gripsthe burner tube along the portion 141, that is at a point between theflattened portion 144 and the burner opening 142.

In operating the lighter the iingerpiece is fully depressed to pullupwardly on the burner tube and fully open its resiliently constrictableflattened portion. The sparking wheel is then rotated to ignite the fuelbeing emitted from the burner tube. When this occurs the iingerpiece maythen be partially released to partially constrict the fuel passage inthe vicinity of the attened portion 144 and thus to provide adjustmentof llame height. Release of the iingerpiece after use allows the burnertube to return to its normal position wherein its flattened portionbecomes fully constricted to prevent further ilow 0f fuel from thereservoir.

It can be seen that in the lighter constructed in accordance with theteachings of the present invention as described above, the entirethrottling process takes place across the gradually adjustable portionof the gas passage, the positive fiow control means being such thatlittle or no pressure drop occurs thereacross during operation of thelighter. Ori the other hand, when the lighter is not in use, the entirepressure drop between the lighter reservoir and the atmosphere takesplace across the positive ow control means.

The present invention, as will be appreciated, permits the rathernumerous and complex operations involved in the ignition, theunchecking, the throttling and the adjustment of flow rate of theliquefied fuel ink a small gas lighter to be accomplished with ease andsafety while holding and operating the lighter with one hand.

Having thus described my invention with particular reference to thepreferred form thereof, it will be obvious to those skilled in the artto which the invention pertains, after understanding my invention, thatvarious changes arid modifications may be made therein without departingfrom the spirit and scope of my invention, as defined by the claimsappended thereto.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A hand held lighter of the gas fuel type comprising a reservoir formaintaining highly volatile fuel under pressure in its liquefied state;a sparking wheel having an abrading surface; a fiint element biasedagainst the abrading surface of said sparking wheel; a burner meansincluding a burner nozzle located near said sparking wheel and saidfiint element and a hollow element extending from within said reservoirto said burner nozzle, said hollow element having a first portionterminating in said reservoir, a second portion terminating in saidburner nozzle, a third portion connecting said first and second portionsand extending at an angle to said first portion, and a resilientlyconstrictable portion at the juncture of said first and third portionswhich is internally exposed to reservoir pressure; and a movablefingerpiece connected to said hollow element at said third portion tocontrol constriction of said constrictable portion, said fingerpiecebeing normally in a position which coincides with complete constrictionof said constrictable portion and being movable from said position in adirection to cause movement of the third portion of said hollow elementto produce gradual opening of said constrictable portion from acondition of complete constriction to a maximum opening whereby saidfingerpiece operates to provide complete control of the checking,unchecking, throttling and flow rate of fuel from said reservoir to saidburner nozzle.

2. A hand held lighter of the gas fuel type comprising a reservoir formaintaining highly volatile fuel under pressure in its liquefied state;a sparking wheel having an abrading surface; a fiint element biasedagainst the abrading surface of said sparking wheel; a burner meansincluding a burner nozzle located near said sparking wheel and saidiiint element and a hollow element extending from within said reservoirto said burner nozzle, said hollow element having a first portionterminating in said reservoir, a second portion terminating in saidburner nozzle, and a resiliently bendable portion located externally tosaid reservoir at a location between said first and second biased to aposition which coincides with maximum bending and complete constrictionof said constrictable portion and being movable from said position in adirection to produce gradual opening of said constrictable portion froma condition of complete constriction to a maximum opening whereby saidfingerpiece operates to provide complete control of the checking,unchecking, throttling and flow rate of fuel from said reservoir to saidburner nozzle.`

3. A hand held lighter of the gas fuel type comprising a reservoir formaintaining a highly volatile fuel under` pressure in its liquefiedstate; a sparking wheel having an abrading surface; a flint elementbiased against the abrading surface of said sparking wheel; a burnermeans including a burner nozzle located -near said sparking wheel andsaid flint element and an elongated tubular element extending fromwithin said reservoir to said burner nozzle,

said tubular element having a first portion fixed against movement andterminating in said reservoir, a second free portionterminating in saidburner nozzle, a third portion connecting said first and second portionsand extending laterally between said first and second portions,

and constrictable portion located externally to said res- -ervoir at thejuncture of said first and third portions andr I internally exposed toreservoir pressure; a depressible fingerpiece pivotally mountedintermediate its ends above said reservoir and in overlying relationshipwith the third portion of said tubular element with one end dependingtherefrom. and connected to said tubular element at said i third portionand with the other end positioned for depression by the finger of theuser from a first position to a second position producing movement ofthe third portion of the tubular element with respect to the rst portionthereof to effect a gradual change in the cross-sectional area of saidconstrictable portion from zero to a maximum value whereby saidfingerpiece operates to permit complete control of the checking,unchecking, throttling and ow rate of fuel from said reservoir to saidburner nozzle, and

means for normally biasing said fingerpiece in a direction opposite thedirection of depression to normally `hold i it in said first position.

References Cited by the Examiner i UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,565,903 8/1951 Zellweger 67-7.1 2,743,597 5/ 1956 Newman 67-7.1

FOREIGN PATENTS 727,195 3/ 1955 Great Britain.

FREDERICK L. MATTESON,` JR., Primary Examiner. ROBERT A. DUA, Examiner.

1. A HAND HELD LIGHTER OF TH GAS FUEL TYPE COMPRISING A RESERVOIR FORMAINTAINING HIGHLY VOLATILE FUEL UNDER PRESSURE IN ITS LIQUEFIED STATE;A SPARKING WHEEL HAVING AN ABRADING SURFACE; A FLINT ELEMENT BIASEDAGAINST THE ABRADING SURFACE OF SAID SPARKING WHEEL; A BURNER MEANSINCLUDING A BURNER NOZZLE LOCATED NEAR SAID SPARKING WHEEL AND SAIDFLINT ELEMENT AND A HOLLOW ELEMENT EXTENDING FROM WITHIN SAID RESERVOIRTO SAID BURNER NOZZLE, SAID HOLLOW ELEMENT HAVING A FIRST PORTIONTERMINATING IN SAID RESERVOIR, A SECOND PORTION TERMINATING IN SAIDBURNER NOZZLE, A THIRD PORTION CONNECTING SAID FIRST AND SECOND PORTIONSAND EXTENDING AT AN ANGLE TO SAID FIRST PORTION, AND A RESILIENTLYCONSTRICTABLE PORTION AT THE JUNCTURE OF SAID FIRST AND THIRD PORTIONSWHICH IS INTERNALLY EXPOSED TO RESERVOIR PRESSURE; AND A MOVABLEFINGERPIECE CONNECTED TO SAID HOLLOW ELEMENT AT SAID THIRD PORTION TOCONTROL CONSTRICTION OF SAID CONSTRICTABLE PORTION, SAID FINGERPIECEBEING NORMALLY IN A POSITION WHICH COINCIDES WITH COMPLETE CONSTRICTIONOF SAID CONSTRICTABLE PORTION AND BEING MOVABLE FROM SAID POSITION IN ADIRECTION TO CAUSE MOVEMENT OF THE THIRD PORTION OF SAID HOLLOW ELEMENTTO PRODUCE GRADUAL OPENING OF SAID CONSTRICTABLE PORTION FROM ACONDITION OF COMPLETE CONSTRICTION TO A MAXIMUM OPENING WHEREBY SAIDFINGERPIECE OPERATES TO PROVIDE COMPLETE CONTROL OF THE CHECKING,UNCHECKING, THROTTLING AND FLOW RATE OF FUEL FROM SAID RESERVOIR TO SAIDBURNER NOZZLE.